Banana and Oranges
by Penamesolen
Summary: Post UtaPri 2000%. After Otoya wakes up from a weird dream, STARISH decide that they need to figure something very personal about Nanami Haruka. How they are going to find it out is the more awkward part. No pairings except for STARISH/Haruka.


**This fanfic is based on the anime. I would like to apologize in advance if any homosexuals or bisexuals read and get offended by this fic; please tell me so that I can edit it. ****Constructive criticism is welcome. In particular help regarding vocabulary and grammar, as I am still learning English. :)**

Haruka honestly did not know how she found herself in this situation. Normally, she knew that she would find herself in quite a lot of entertainment when she was with STARISH – they _were_ a group filled of character, after all – but this was a little too confusing.

They were in the living room at the dorm, having spent the majority of their day off doing their own business. Haruka had been in the piano room doing some finishing touches on a new, special song, but she had no idea how her friends had spent the day.

"Nanami…" Syo said with a serious and grave tone.

Everybody was there. Or, well, only the members of STARISH were physically in the room, but Haruka had a feeling that president Shining Saotome was spying on them somewhere. And she swore she saw an eye now or then from the corridor that most likely belonged to Quartet Night. Natsuki and Ikkoto were sitting in one of the couches to her right, while Masato and Tokiya sat on the larger one right in front of her. Ren was standing on the left side, obviously trying to pretend he cared less about the issue at hand, but Haruka saw the curious glint when he looked at her.

Meanwhile, Syo had kneeled before where she sat in the most comfortable chair in the room. His eyes were intense, well, more intense than usual, and carried a hint of desperation. In his left hand, he held one banana, while in his right hand, two oranges.

"Nanami," he repeated, "what would you like, one banana or two oranges?"

* * *

_Otoya was nervous. His legs felt like jelly, his hands were shaking furiously, and his head was burning. He was glad there was no mirror in sight, as he was probably a mess right now. But it was an important moment._

_He was going to confess to Nanami Haruka._

_The other members did not know yet, which might be for the better, as they would probably make a big deal out of it. But he had talked with his senior, and he has given the thumps up. Even Shining Saotome appeared out of nowhere (of course) to give his support._

_And there she was, in a beautiful white dress, looking confused but patient at him._

_"What was it you wanted to talk about, Ittoki?" she asked. Considering how Syo had early convinced her to call him by his first name, Otoya had wanted to request the same, but this would have to wait for another time._

_"I-I have something I have to, I mean, _need_ to tell you, Haruka." He closed his eyes, took a deep breath and… "I'm in love with you."_

_"Oh," was all that came out of her. "_Oh_." Otoya dared not open his eyes, lest he be met with the signs of rejection. "W-w-well, um, O-Otoya, I have something I need to tell you, too."_

_The boy opened his eyes now, for once hopeful. "What is it?"_

_Haruka smiled awkwardly._

_"I'm a lesbian."_

* * *

Otoya screamed.

Before he knew it, he found himself in the gym room, with the other six members of STARLISH looking at him with various expressions.

Masato was the first to say anything. "What's wrong, Ittoki?"

"Na-Na-Na-Na-Na-Na-"

"_Yes_?" Natsuki asked.

"Na-Nanami! Where's Nanami?"

Ren frowned at the sudden question, but answered still, "Lady went to town to meet with that friend of hers, Tomochika."

"Why do you want to know?" Tokiya asked with a neutral voice. He had always been the more comfortable guy in the group when it came to Haruka, at least as long as Cecil was not being too touchy in front of him.

Otoya widened his eyes. "W-with Shibuya? She-she's on a _date_ with Shibuya?!" Just the word "date" was enough to gather everyone's attention again, even though their eyes were filled with confusion and doubt.

"What're you getting at, Otoya? Shibuya's her old roommate, they're just having lunch now that she's in town again."

"But, but, b-but-"

"Is something the matter, Ikkoto?" Masato asked, his eyes closed as he tried to write lyrics on one of Haruka's new songs.

As the eyes were staring at him, demanding an answer, Otoya began to feel his cheeks burn. He was not necessarily the brightest boy in the group, but he knew this would be awkward…

"I, um, I dreamed that Haruka told me she was a lesbian."

It was completely silent as this new piece of information was registered. Then Ren let out a chuckle.

"Really? _Really_, Otoya? You're worried about the Lady's sexuality of all things because of a dream?"

"Please do not treat dreams that lightly," Cecil suddenly said. He was sitting by the window, and had not made his presence that obvious till now.

"'Scuse me?"

"Dreams work in very wonderful but mysterious ways." He smiled to them. "Sometimes they tell of forgotten past, or the coming future. Other times they let people meet each other, like with Haruka and me."

Now Masato has stopped writing and looked at the new STARISH member. "Are you implying that Ittoko's dream regarding Ms. Nanami's sexual orientation might be true?"

"I dunno," the foreigner answered, smiling awkwardly. "Some dreams are just dreams. I just don't want anyone to disrespect their worth."

"Oookaaayy…" Syo sighed. But he noticed a horrific expression on his friend Natsuki's face. "Hey, something wrong, Natsuki?"

"That explains it…"

"Explains what?"

"Why she always is uncomfortable or panics whenever I try to hug her. This explains it all."

The pink-haired boy growled, "I think it has more to do that you're a guy twice her size and ten times her strength trying to violate her private space, rather than her being gay."

Ren, remembering all the times he has half-teasingly, half-sincerely tried to kiss or embrace a nervous Haruka, was not sure whether to laugh or look away in shame. To not embarrass himself, he observed the others in the room. Otoya had just gotten more worried, Syo seemed to be having his doubts with the way he looked down on the ground, Cecil was looking out the window again, Masato had his head down on his paper but had let go of the pen; Tokiya had his back to him, so who knew what he thought. The lack of sound in the room was awkward, and Ren waited – and almost wished – for the president to appear to give them some nonsensical words of advice. And then probably fire them on the suspicion of being in love.

Finally Natsuki broke the silence. "Hey, it might just be a dream, like you guys said. I-I mean, no reason to worry." Silence. "N-not that there even is anything to worry about, hahah…"

Something caught Cecil's eye. "Oh, they're back."

Immediately he was pushed away so that they could get a view. And there they were. Haruka and her friend Tomochika were walking toward the building, and it was all fine and good. Except they all noticed that the two were very close to each other, with their arms tightly linked as they laughed about something the singer said.

"Many women in this age act like this," Tokiya said, "and they're generally more comfortable with physical contact with each other."

"Right, it's nothing…" Syo mumbled, mostly to himself. But then the girls stopped walking, and suddenly Tomochika's face closed in on Haruka's. "H-hey, what's she doing?!"

"What's going on?" Cecil asked, trying to get a good spot.

Tomochika's face kept being uncomfortably close to the composer, before she backed away with a heartfelt laughter. Then she turned around and waived her goodbye as she walked toward the exit again.

The boys were silent as they tried to get what had exactly happened. It had looked quite normal. The girls had returned after eating – late – talking to each other – very closely – before returning home – with Tomochika walking her home.

"What the hell was that?!" Syo bursted, and the boys had to drag him away before Haruka turned around to see where the noise came from.

The window was now closed, and the boys were at a loss of words. Until Cecil spoke again. "What happened?"

"Otoya, are you sure dream-Haru said she liked girls?!" Natsuki was now in front of Otoya, fear and desperation clear in his eyes.

"I-I-I-I'm p-pretty sure, b-but…"

Tokiya spoke, "They were just being normal."

"Since when was it normal to go straight up to someone's face like that and just, just…"

"Ms. Shibuya has always been a very expressive and open person," Misato said with his controlled voice, but inside him, he felt like he could panic any minute. True, Tomochika was always very lovely toward the composer, but he had never gotten the impression that it was anything more than a personality trait. However… "They have been like this ever since they started on Saotome Academy."

Then Ren purred. "I wonder," he said slowly, smirking as he knew everyone was looking at him. Even though he was beginning to wonder himself, he had to keep his cool appearance, plus it was not everyday he got to watch the whole STARISH panic together like this. The last time was when HEAVEN had wanted to take Haruka away, but then he had been part of the panic group, and that was hardly any fun. "What if the ladies have been together since the very beginning and we simply did not notice?"

Quiet.

"That would totally explain why she was so awkward toward us!" Otoya yelled, mostly to himself.

"I was just joking…" Ren tried to say in the background, though he had to admit to himself that the damage was already done.

They were quiet for a couple of seconds before Natsuki dared to ask a question. "So, _does_ Haru like girls or not, do you think?"

The boys looked at each other, waiting for someone to give the same confident answer they gave at the very beginning of this whole mess. But it seemed like no one was as sure anymore. Even Ren and Tokiya were quiet.

In the end, it was Masato who spoke up. "I take it that no one here is that sure anymore."

"Then should we just ask her?" Cecil suggested. Immediately, the six original members of STARISH yelled a big "NO!", making him jump.

"That would be the most indecent disrespect to ever befall on a person!" Masato said, letting his hair flair a little to hide the blush he was afraid was coming.

"Then how are we supposed to know?"

"Know what?"

The boys turned in surprise to find Haruka by the door, looking curious but happy.

"We were talking about your-"

"_Your_," Ren hurried to interrupt, as the others distracted Natsuki from slipping out their little conversation, "evening with your friend, what was her name, Tomochika? How was it?"

Buying his smooth distraction, she smiled in a jarring happiness. "Oh, it was wonderful, Jinguji, it's been so long since I saw Tomo last. Oh, that reminds me, I've got to go and write some music!"

"Wait, you're in a hurry?" Cecil asked.

"Yes!" she explained, smiling back at them. "Meeting Tomo again today really inspired me, so I have to hurry and write it down before I lose it! I'll see you at dinner!" And so she ran out of sight.

The boys were quiet at they ran through this new information. They all knew that Haruka was a rare natural at composing music, but she only got that _smile_, that _inspiration_, from _them_. Not anyone _else_. And the boys were self-centred enough to believe that Haruka specially loved _them_. So hearing their composer saying this about someone _else_ left a bad taste in their mouth. It was then – without uttering another word – an agreement had been made between them.

They needed to figure out Haruka's sexual orientation.

And that creepy sentence was exactly why they refused to say it out loud.

* * *

"Nanami," Syo repeated, "what would you like, one banana or two oranges?"

"U-um, I'm, I'm not entirely sure why you're asking me this, Syo? Is this really all the fruit we have left?" She was not really fond of either banana or citrus, but neither did she want to hurt their feelings.

Tokiya answered, "It doesn't matter. Would you rather have one single banana or two oranges?"

"But, why would I get two oranges? That seems hardly fair."

"Don't worry about that, we won't get mad." Masato was starting to regret this. It was awkward enough as it was, and then you had sweet, innocent Haruka trying to bring logic into the equation. Oh, how the pianist wished he had protested more when the suggestion came about.

"Uh, okay. But, I mean, I don't want to be a bother. I mean, if there's only one banana, maybe some of you would like it more?"

The boys had to look away to avoid each other's eyes. Normally most of them would be okay with a banana, but considering the allegory behind it, they decided to keep quiet. Ren could not help but give a light chuckle at the innocent implications.

"Oh, I know!" she exclaimed, clapping her hands together. "If this is all the fruit we have left, I'll just cut them in pieces and share with all of you! I don't want to get more than anyone here."

"Nanami," Tokiya finally said, opening his eyes. "We can all share afterward. We are just asking in a curious mind what you would choose."

"But, um…" Although she now felt a little safer, knowing she would not eat unfairly, she still felt like this test was more than just pure curiosity. "Well, um, I guess choosing the banana would be the most fair if someone else need the food more… But then again, if I was to eat with someone, it would be most productive if I chose the two oranges so that we could get one each."

"No, this is just you and you alone, Nanami."

"Oh, I see. Well, then it would be most fair if I chose the banana. But, um, what happens to the oranges?"

"The oranges? They, uh," Otoya looked around to see if someone found a good answer. They had agreed to share as little information as possible, as to not affect Haruka's choice beyond what she thought herself. They just never figured she would try to bring logic into the discussion (well, some of them had, but were voted out).

"Because maybe I should just take both the banana _and_ the oranges, if the other will be thrown away."

Syo wanted to tell her not to be greedy, but swallowed his words in frustration. He had a friend who had once said he liked both boys and girls, so it would be unfair to him to tell her only choose one.

The shortest STARISH member was beginning to realize how stupid this situation they had placed themselves in was.

"Haruka," a female voice suddenly shouted out, and they turned around to see Tomochika by the door. "I was wondering what the guys outside were looking at," she said and pointed with her thumb to outside the frame, where Quartet Night were hiding. Some of the boys and Haruka could hear a weak "sshh" from one of them.

"Tomo!" Forgetting about the fruit, the composer rose from the chair and approached her friend. "Are you here for the papers?"

"Yeah, I'm not too early, am I? You said to return at the evening, but it was either now or late at night that I would come over."

Haruka shook her head. "Oh, no, it's nothing, we were just playing. I'll go and get the sheets, just wait here!" The girl turned around and started running, but then turned back and addressed STARISH, "I'm sorry about this, guys, I promise I'll come back in a minute and we can continue!"

"Wait, Nanami-!" But she was already gone. "Darn it, and we were _this_ close to get an answer out of her, too!"

"What kinda game were you playing, anyway?" Tomochika asked, properly entering the room and noticing the fruits in Syo's hands. "What're you doing with the banana and oranges?"

At this, Ren smirked. He went and took the items from the smaller boy's hands while saying, "Well, maybe we should try it on you, then, Shibuya." He presented her the fruits properly. "If you had to choose between one banana and two oranges, which would you choose?"

Masato and Kotoya were face palming at this scene, but Otoya, Natsuki, Syo and Cecil were both surprised and a little impressed with this idea. Even if it proved too hard to get an answer out of Haruka, at the very least they would know if they had, for lack of better words, one more to worry about.

Tomochika looked briefly at the banana, then the oranges, before looking annoyed but suspicious at the rich young man before her. "Are they supposed to be allegories for a dick and boobs?"

"What?!"

Her quick revelation of their plan and her choice of words left them all in gaping shock, especially Masato, who swallowed expressive words against them.

"Don't think I'm as gullible as Haruka, boys, though you were being a little too obvious from the start, especially considering Kurusu's reaction yesterday." At this, she took a quick glance to Syo, who blushed. Of course she would have heard it even if she had not seen them.

The second Jinguji son could not help but laugh. "Of course, I should have expected this from you, Shibuya." Especially considering all the times she had come and interrupted his rare alone times with Haruka, not by dragging her away – because she knew Ren would not hurt Haruka and that her friend liked spending time with him still – but by joining the conversation. He had gotten to know her quite a bit, considering he had been in a different class than her.

The teenage girl crossed her arms. "So, is this about Haruka? Why on earth are you trying to figure out her sexuality, of all things?"

"I-it's my fault, Shibuya," Otoya quickly said, slightly raising his hand. "I had this crazy dream that made us paranoid, and when we saw the way you two acted yesterday-"

"We got a little carried away, as it would seem," Masato ended, preferring to end the whole discussion now.

But Tomochika was not finished yet. "And now you want to figure out if, at the very least, _I am_ a threat to your love-" She paused to mockingly count the boys, "octagon, your love octagon. Unless counting the four other guys outside, then it'd be a love dodecagon."

They all looked away in embarrassment, except for Cecil, who exclaimed, "Wait, are the seniors also-"

"No, we're not!" Ranmaru suddenly yelled from outside, before Renji had to drag him away and tell him to be quiet since they were just spying.

At this, Tomochika had to laugh. "You guys are impossible." Then her glance became stern again. "Listen, whatever Haruka likes is not for me to say, but I'm not interested in her that way. I don't know if it stops your stupid paranoia, but at least you know that."

"Miss Shibuya, we realize we have been very disrespectful, and we're sorry." Tokiya bowed to the female singer.

"It's all right for me, I don't care," she said, sighing. "But give up on Haruka, okay? Even if you somehow manage her to choose, it's dumb and won't answer anything at all." An eyebrow was raised. "How the heck did you come up with this idea at all?"

The boys turned to look at Tokiya, who looked down with an embarrassing blush. "The headmaster suggested it," he mumbled.

It was silent for some seconds. At the fifteenth second, Haruka returned to the room with sheets of paper in her arms, after taking a quick look over where Quartet Night were still hiding. "I'm sorry it took so long," she said, "I-"

She was cut off by Tomochika's glorious laughter.

"U-um, Tomo…?"

"I…" Tomochika tried to get out, but her laughter just continued. "I just…"The boys (sans Tokiya), kind of wanted to join in, but decided not to; the former solo singer might have been the one who got the silly advice, but they were all part in actually going through with it.

Finally she started to calm down, though she had to wipe out a tear that had formed. "I can see why you never use your TV, Haruka," she finally got out, straightened up and approached her friend, giving her a clap on her shoulder. "These guys are enough entertainment for a week!"

"Um, oh, y-yes, they are!" Haruka replied, although she was not entirely sure what she was agreeing with, exactly. "Oh, but here is the music, Tomo! I hope you'll like it."

"Of course, Haruka, everything you make is fantastic!" The singer accepted the papers and gave her a thankful wink. "Well, then, I've gotta go back to work, or my seniors are gonna think I'm avoiding work and start a nation-wide search party for me." Before she turned to the exit, though, Tomochika turned back to Ren. "Oh, can I take a snack for the way back?"

Ren blinked. "Well, I guess…"

But the young woman had already taken one of the oranges before he could properly finish. "Thanks," she said, and then gave a quick hug to Haruka. "I'll see you again soon, Haruka. Bye bye!"

"Good bye, Tomo!"

As the footsteps cleared, Haruka looked at the dumbfounded men in the room. "So, um… How are we supposed to finish the game without the other orange?"

"Forget it," Masato sighed and rose from his sitting place. "I will go and get some more fruit we can all share. I knew this was a bad idea."

"I-I'm sorry," Haruka's eyebrows rose in worry. "I-I played the game wrong, didn't I?"

"No, my Lady, you're innocent," he said and smiled. He considered patting her head, but decided that the other guys in the room would probably appreciate it less today than usual. "We were just messing with you a little."

"O-okay. Um, I'll go and help Hijirikawa with the fruit, then." As she exited the room again, though, she looked toward the still hidden Quartet Night. "Um, if you're being uncomfortable there, you can join in the room."

The singers left in the living room watched as she disappeared out of view, listening to their seniors arguing as they too left the scene ("Damn it, I'll just go to my room!" "H-hey, Ran-Ran, don't be so cold!" "True, 'tis amusing no longer, we might as well exit." "Agreed.").

"Well, we tried, and that's what counts," Cecil concluded, smiling. The response was a mix of sighs and glares at his direction.

"If we just hadn't listened to your dreamy bull crap, we wouldn't be in this dumb situation!" Syo yelled.

The foreigner widened his eyes. "Huh? What did I do?"

"N-nothing, nothing, Cecil, you didn't do anything," Otoya tried nervously, but that only made Syo turn his attention to him.

"And you and your stupid dream!"

"Well, there is not much to do about it, anymore," Natsuki said, trying to calm his friend down.

Ren sighed, but with a weak smile plastered on his face. "True that." He looked at the banana and remaining orange in his hands. "Anyone want the banana while we're waiting for the Lady and Hijirikawa?"

"Sure, I'll take it." Syo said, extending his hand to receive it.

Everyone stared at him with blank faces, causing him to blush. "Wh-what, are we still doing the stupid allegories?!"

"Nah, no worries, Munchkin," Ren said and threw the banana to the younger boy.

"Don't call me Munchkin, you perv!"

"Aaw, Syo, you're so cute when you're bewildered!"

"Shut up, Natsuki, lemme go!"

Ren had to hide a chuckle as he watched the commotion continue while he prepared his own orange. Tomochika was right; who needed a television when you had them?


End file.
